PM Abbott won't rule out early election

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he may consider a snap election if the government faces a long period of problems with the parliament.

The government's bid to deliver on its key election promise - to scrap the carbon tax - spectacularly failed on Thursday when Palmer United Party senators voted with Labor and the Greens.

PUP leader Clive Palmer, who went to the election saying he would scrap the tax, accused the government of "double-crossing" his party over an amendment to toughen sanctions against businesses which do not pass on price cuts from the abolition.

The prime minister on Friday said it was too early to talk about an early election, as the new Senate had only been in place for a week.

"If we had six months or 12 months of difficulty ... then maybe it would be time to start thinking along those lines," Mr Abbott said.

He described the events of this week as a few days of "argy-bargy", rather than a political stalemate.

"We are determined to get on with governing and get the carbon tax scrapped as quickly as possible," Mr Abbott said.